An inspiring Artist Parent interview with Mark Clay @mrclayox, an artist from Oxford, UK.
Tell us about yourself?
I am a husband and a father before I am an artist. We have two teenage daughters currently aged 17 and 15. With a busy working and volunteering life, my art has to flex and fit around my other commitments. However, I feel that this has enriched my practise rather than limited it by giving it strong hooks to my broader life, interests and of course my friends and family.
How has being a parent had a positive impact on your artistic practice?
Definitely a positive impact. In fact I don't think I would have taken my first steps as an artist (around ten years ago) without the impetus of doing creative activities with my young daughters. First it was for them, but having seen their own responsiveness and enjoyment, I soon realised that creativity could be for me too. Now they are much older, my daughters are quite capable of self-direction in their artistic activities, but we all still enjoy sharing ideas, discussing techniques, and seeing each other develop and grow as artists. Each of us are very different in our creative interests and endeavours - which is just as it should be.
What are the challenges you have faced in your artistic practice being a parent?
The obvious issues are time and energy (but isn't that true of every artist?) There are quite simply times when art has to take a back seat to family commitments. This is especially true when children are younger but as they grow, the duties don't go away: they just change. It involves an awful lot of plate-spinning and, occasionally, one of them crashes to the ground!
Any advice for other Artist Parents and how they can continue to nurture their practice?
Don't beat yourself up if you feel that parenthood is stopping you being an artist. I have found that it is better to do a small number of things well than try to keep doing everything you want to do as an artist. That way lies frustration, exhaustion and - worst of all - resentment. If you have a way of involving your children in your art practise that can be a boon for you and them alike, It might be as simple as a fun collaborative doodling exercise or taking them to art activities at a local gallery or museum. Looking for artistic things you can share with them is a compromise, yes, but I have found it to be a workable one. Some of those activities have enabled me to develop workshop and other activities that I have shared with others in my art practise. (e.g. collaging or drawing).
Is there anything else you would like to say, share or promote?
I don't think there is any greater gift you can give your children than showing them the value of a creative life. Parents are their children's first role models and I believe that modelling a creative life is really empowering and nurturing for them.
Thank you to Mark for sharing his story and thank you for reading. If you would like to read more stories or for your work to be shared then follow and tag @artist_parent on Instragam.
Uploaded 25th September 2024